Storage-battery plate.



VPATENTED FEB; 25

' A. 0. TATE.

STORAGE' BATTERY PLATE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 1, 1905.

INVENTOR (7m UNITED sTATEs PATENT OFFICE.

ALFRED o. TATE, or TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, ASSIGNOR To TATE ELECTROLYTIC COMPANY or AMERICA, A CORPORATION or NEW YORK.

STORAGE BATTERY PLATE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb; 25', 1908.

T all whom it may concern."

Be it known that I, ALFRED O. TATE, a. subject of the King of Great Britain, residmg in the city of Toronto, county of York,

Province of Ontario, Dominion ofCanada,

have made a new and useful Invention in Storage-Battery Plates, of which the following is a specification.

My invention is directed especially to an improvement in storage batteries in which I the active material, such as lead-oxid, is

applied directly to conducting plates, grids, or the like, and known in the art generally asiof the Faure type, and its distinguishing characteristic lies in the fact that it embraces in a single plate both positive and negative functions; that is to say, each plate embraces a series of anodes and a series of cathodes, each of relatively narrow cross section and all closely interconnected and interrelated in such manner as to constitute a compact electrode plate, and it has for its objects, first, to effect the reduction of the internal resistance of a cell to practically the lowest possible amount. iecond, to increase the effective working surface of a cell to practically the highest possible extent: Third, to increase the e'fliciency of a cell to practically the highest point for given weights of material used.

ourth, to construct a storage battery of the Faure type of such a nature that buckli-ng is absolutely impossible. Fifth, to construct a storage battery plate of the Faure type in which there shall be nopossibility of deterioration through detrition of the active material. Sixth, to construct a storage battery plate of the Faure type which shall not be injured by over-charging or over-discharging. Seventh, to construct a storage battery plate of the Faure ty e 'Wl'llCll shall have great mechanical strength. Eighth,- to construct'a storage battery plate of the Faure type of a series of strips or ribbon-like anodes and cathodes so interleaved or interrelated and boundtogether that the charging 0r dischargingcurrent is caused to ass through the smallest possible volumes of the electrolyte and that the active material shall always be retained between the anodes and cathodes. Ninth, to construct astorage battery plate of the Faure type in which the active surfaces are in the imtl'ire of thin 'film like structures whereby the charging and discharging rates may be largely increased and without the, usual damaging effects, Tenth, toconstruct a storage battery plate of the Fa-ure type of great flexibility. Eleventh, to construct a storage battery plate of the Faure type embodying both positive and negative functions, which is hereinafter referred to as a bi-functional plate in contradistinction to all plates Whic have been utilized in the art heretofore and which are universally uni: functional; that is to say, possess either positive or negative functions only,

Heret'ofore all storage batteries of the Faure t'ype known by me tobe in commercial, use have been so constructed as to-embod-y not less than two complete individual plates representing respectively the positive arid negative elements'of the assembled cell. all such cells the'total internal res-istanceis represented by the resistance of the plates exposed in the'electrolyte, lus the resistance of the electrolyte itself. ach plate is connected, when being oharged,'wit h one of the poles of the chargiin generator. The charging current enters the first plate or series of such, plates at a definite oint or points at one edge, and enters the e ectrolyte through" the entire face or faces thereof,passing thence through thewhole volume of the intervening electrolyte to the entire face or faces of the negative plate or plates, and out" of the latter at one edge by a connection or connections in all respects like those before described;

In all such storage-battery cells th epositive and negative plates forming the element are electrically interdependent; that is to say, the current flows from one series of lates to the companion series; thus when t e cell is in action all of the plates of which it is com posed are in electrical contact, each with the other through the medium of the electrolyte, and this interde endent relation, is and necessarily must e invariably maintained. My invention does not relate to the com struction of a storage battery element com posed of aseries of plates, but has reference solely to the construction.-' of a single plate of the Fauretype which 'diflers from any such plate heretofore invented, in that it possesses both positive and negative-functions whereas 'all other storage-battery plates of said type possess one function only, this being either i is 'a) bi functional" plate while all other plates positive or negative. In other words, mine I of the Faure type are' unifunctiolial. Whena number of my. lates are assembled-in a cellin multiple re ation they arenot necessarily in electrical contact through the me,

dium of the electrolyte, because each plate is an absolutely independent unit and performs all its 'functions'mthout any referencewvhatever to other platesin the-series. The cur-. rent flows across and through my plate in a lateral direction, entering it at one side and leaving it at the other, and any electrical contact that there maybe between a series of these plates through the medium of the electrolyte is purely incidental. They are not inter dependent but are in all respects 5 absolutely independent each of the other.

An attempt as heretofore been madein the art, asdisclosed'in'British.Patent No. 1610 of 1886,.to form astorage batteryplat'e 2 0f the Plant type of a bi-functionalnature,

by interleaving thin narrow leadustrips s'o as to constitute anodes and cathodes and connectingthe alternate sets of such strips, one

I to a positive pole and the other to a negative p.ole, said strips being separated from each other by relatively thin porous insulating I media and all bound together inside a wooden frame and held therein by a wooden block at the top thereof. It is obvious to anyone skilled in the art that such a battery as this would be commercially impractical, for the reasonthat these thin strips in this form of cell would be very rapidly reduced to lead oxidunder normal operation of the Plant type-of cell, and the structure wouldrapidly fall to pieces. That this condition was anticipated by the inventor himselfis shown by the means which he 1provided-and which he refers to in his speci1cation-for arresting 40 the disintegrated portions of the lates, in

order to prevent short circuiting. am also aware that 'a storage battery plate of the Faure type and of a bifunctional nature has heretofore been devised in which the positive 5 and negative elements are located in -a I horizontal plane, as disclosed in Figs. 5 to-'8 inclusive of the drawings of U. S. atent to A. S. Krotz, No. 583,912,- granteo. une 8th, 1897, and I make no claim hereinafter broad enough to include sucha'structure.

In my novel plate the strips which I use are protected from disintegration by an alloy of antimony and are furthermore protected 7 from this action by the applied oxid films. These films are so held in place that it is impossible for the oxid or active material-at any time to escape and the result of this construction is that the life of my plateis in definite and necessarily mustbe very long thus fulfilling one of the most valuable and desirable requirements that exists in connection with. the use of storage battery cells.

For a full and clear understanding ofmy invention, such as'will enable others skilled 5 in the art to construct and use the same, ref- "position and the manner of insulatin lateral or exposed edgesfrom the electro yte,:-

erence is had to the accompanyingdrawings, in which,

of one of my novel bi-functionalstorage battery-plates showing the parts separated in the central part thereof, so as tobetter understand the manner of effectually binding all of the same together." Fig.5 2 is an en-' Figure 1 represents a side elevational view larged detail and vertical sectional view" showing the interior, structure, said; section being taken on the line 2' "2.,'Fig.- 3,'and'as seen ooking'thereat from right to left in the direction 'ofthe arrows. Fig. Sis-a sectional I viewtaken through Fig. 2 on the line 33, showing therelation of the essential parts of a" complete plate. Fig. 4 is' a'fl er'spective view:

showing one ofthe spacing, ocking or hold-J- ing blocks and'the manner in which they are, strung upon one of the conducting rods which constitute the poles of the plates and Fig. 5:,

is a sectional View on a largely exa gerated scale of one of the anode-and catho e strips.

.or ribbons-illustrating theact-ive material in.

its

saidview being taken on the line 55 Fig. 2; Referring now to the, drawings in detail,-

inall of which like letters of reference repre sent like parts, a and 0 represent respectively p the anodes and cathodes of a qompleteibie functional plate, made tivel narrow strips or. ri

preferably of rela-fi, bone of 'antimoni- 1 ous ead of about one one-hundredth of aninch inthickness and havin at their lateral edges and lowerends on hot faces retainin flanges of about'one thirty-second of an inc in'depthl It is the function of theseflanges to act as pockets for holdin the oxid or such manner that,-when the arts are assembled, it cannot esca e. T ese pockets, inboth instances, are 1 open at their'to "s so as to afford afreeegress forthegases liberated, as clearly 'shown in-the' drawings. Each ofthe anodesand. cathodes is'provided at one end with a circular opening'which adapts it to be strung anodes a and thelowerone the catho s "c, or vice'versa,

I d, d, are-hard rubber'or'eq'ui-valeht bind-i other active'material I, (see ig. 5) and-in.

upon a conducting bar or rodb, the upper bar sustaining the ing blocks for holding 'the'entire plate together by end pressure. 41,75, rare .lnsulatin spacing and locking blocks, said'iblocks d,

and 11,. i, having cylindrical holes adapting;

them to be strun upontheconducting rods or bars I), b, wit the anode and cathode strips or ribbons. Eahlr-spacing block 'i is affording free passage of the electrolyte firmlysecured together in the manner de-' scribed and as will be a parent on examination of Fig. 1 of the rawings, the lateral edges of the anodes and cathodes are scored or indented and then coated with an insulating paint j, such as gutta percha or any well known equivalent, so that the electrolyte will not attack'the same and can only reach the anodes and cathodes through the edges of the porous diaphragms g, g. v r Storage battery plates of this nature are assembled in cell form in any preferred manner as, for instance, in the well known way by sustaining grooves in a battery trough or box of treated wood; or, of hard rubber, glass or the like. They may then be. con nected up in multiple, or in series, as desired, and in accordance with the service for which they are; designed to be used. Plates of this type may be assembled in large unitsin the same manner as disclosed by me in a prior patent No. 857,910, granted to me by the T. scPatent Oflice on the. 25th day of June, 1907.

I do not limit my invention to the specific details of construction shown in the accompanying drawings, as I believe it is broadly new with me to provide a storage battery plate of the Faure type and of a bifunctional nature, in which the anodes and cathodes are composed of strips of conducting material interleaved; said anodes and cathodes being coated on their opposite faces with active -material and separated. from each other by narrow strips of porous insulating media, the

arrangement being. such that theporous insu'lating media holds the'active materialin place, the inflow of the electrolyte being always through the edges of the porous insu-g latmg media.

Having thus described'my; invention what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Pat]- ent of the United States is- 1. A'bi-functional storage battery plate of theFaure ty e embodying a plurality of narrow conducting-anode stri s electrically connected together at one end and a plurality of similar intervening cathode strips connectedtogether at the other end; in combination with a layer of porous insulating material-J the i applied to their faces between the flanges,

between each anode and cathode strig,

insulating medium being so arranged t at itaiiords an effective protection to the active material, substantially as described. i

' 2. A bi-functional storage battery plate embracing anodes and cathodes of narrow conducting strips or ribbons closely related mechanically and electrically; in combination with a porous insulating medium between eachanodcand cathode, theanodes being all connected together by a conductor at one end and the cathodes similarly connected at the other end, said anodes and cathodes being insulated on their lateral edges, whereby current charge and discharge can only be eiiected through the faces thereof and the intervening porous media, substantially as describedembracing a series of narrow strip like anodes and a series of intervening cathodes of similar structure; in combination with layers of porous insulating media between said anodes Withactive material in combination with porous insulating material between said anodes and cathodes, and means for binding all of the parts together, substantially as described.

5. A bi-functional storage battery plate embracinga series of thin narrow ribbon like anodes havin lateral flanges; a series insulating media between said anodes and means'and. yielding cushions for compensating for expansion and contraction of the parts; together with active material located 'in the grooves between said strips, substan tially asdescribed.

6. A bi-functionalstorage battery plate consisting of thin narrow strips having lateral flanges, saidanodes and cathodes being separated by porous insulating media and connected in multiple at their ends to conducting bars or rods; in combination with bindin spacing blo ks, all so arranged as to constitute one compact unit, substantially as described.

7. A. bi-functional. storage battery plate embracing anodes and cathodes, consisting of thin narrow conducting strips provide with lateral flanges having activematerial and connected. respectively in multiple at 3. A bi-functional storage battery plate:

cathodes being each coated on opposite sides of cathodes similar y constructed, and porouscathodes; in combination. with binding embracing interleaved anodes and cathodes,-

blocks, yielding cushions and and cathodes and conducting binding means at each end of the plate constituting respecthe opposite ends to conducting bars or rods;

in combination with intervenin porous insulating diaphragms, theinter-re ation of the parts being such that a minimum resistance is effected to the current flow and a maximum surface is exposed to the electrolyte, substantially as described. 8. A- storage battery plate embracing the following elements in combination:int erspaced strips of conducting material con stituting respectively anodes and cathodes;

intervening porous insulating media;- end plates or blocks; yielding cushions between the end plates or blocks and-theadjacent end anodes or cathodes; interspacing and locking blocks; binding bolts and 'nuts'there- -for, all so arranged that when bound together they constitute one complete bi-functional plate, substantially as described.

9. A bi-functional storage battery plate 20 having its anodes and cathodes in close mechanical relation with. each other and separated by narrow strips of porous insulatmg media the assembled parts being so arran' ed that th'ecurrent flow in charging or' disc arging is'through the anodes to and through the insulating media and the electrolytic layer or vice versa', the fluid supply being effected by passage thereof throu the lateraledges only of the'insulating media, 30 substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I v have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

. I ALFREDO. TATE. Witnesses V CL J. KI N'ri-IER, M. F; KEATING. 

